A Brief Engagement
by Vestal Virgin
Summary: A ficlet written for CF for VAMB's Secret Drabble 2015 exchange. Four years in the Delta Quadrant are weighing heavily on Captain Janeway and Chakotay. Kathryn has a plan to help them both, if Chakotay will agree. Thank you, KJaneway115, for the beta.


Secret Drabble/Ficlet Spring 2015  
Request: J/C  
No Goes: Seven or OOC  
First Line: Now that she'd done it, she realized she hadn't really thought things through.

A BRIEF ENGAGEMENT

Now that she'd done it, she realized she hadn't really thought things through. Oh, she had carefully selected her clothes, comfortable but leaving her shoulders bare and giving a gentle tug across her breasts when she moved her arms. She had pinned back her hair to casually curl toward her cheeks, and even tucked extra clips in her bag in case she lost one. Concentrating on the small details left little room in her thoughts for the big ones.

A couple of hours were all Kathryn Janeway wanted this evening. Two hours to indulge herself, to recapture a little of the happiness that had slowly seeped away over four years in the Delta Quadrant. Things had been tougher than usual lately, wearing her down more and more. Or maybe, each day seemed harder _because_ she was wearing down.

She never expected life to be easy. An easy life was a boring life from her perspective, and her nature could not abide boring. Once in a while on this ship of lost souls, though, she needed to be content. When she had made her plans for this evening, only one thought seemed to satisfy her.

It had been a while for both of them, and she'd seen the same tension claiming her first officer that had sneaked up on her - overworked, under-rested, with too much time spent wading through reports, assisting with repairs, meeting the needs of the crew, and ensuring that _Voyager_ kept flying toward home for one more day. Chakotay smiled less frequently, grew quieter and more resigned, and his eyes reflected more shadows than light on some mornings. She and he both felt the strain pulling at them. Command was a lonely existence.

Kathryn had waited for a quiet moment the day before and approached Chakotay in his office, going to him in his territory. Over a cup of tea in front of the bank of monitors that displayed the heartbeat of the ship, she had laid out her request. It wasn't complicated by any means, but still, it had been a while. Given his recent mood, she'd been uncertain of her reception. A brief engagement planned for the two of them wasn't so much to ask, was it?

To her relief, Chakotay had genuinely smiled, his dark eyes shining. He'd admitted he had hoped for a while that an opportunity would arise. But as work and weariness piled up, he'd bent to his task and pushed the thought away. When she had clasped his shoulder before leaving his office, she'd felt the muscles relax and the stress melt away from him. He had committed himself to her without question, and her steps had felt lighter on her way back to the bridge.

Kathryn pulled on her shoes, zipped her small bag, and left her quarters for Holodeck Two, neutral territory. Late in the evening, the corridors were mostly empty. She nodded politely to the few crewmen she passed, hoping her expression hid her building anticipation. When the holodeck door opened to her code, a flutter of nervousness accompanied her entry.

Chakotay quietly waited inside, leaning beside the control panel with his ankles crossed. Oh, she really had not thought this through, but she didn't care. In front of her stood the man who had taught her about Spirit Guides, and built her a bathtub, and sailed with her on Lake George. The lines of strain had smoothed away from his face, his muscular arms flexed in his short-sleeve shirt, and his stance showed off the bulge of his powerful calves. She had granted two hours for their little indulgence, but wondered if she would be content with that, after all.

"Good evening, Kathryn." He eyed her bag as she lowered it to the floor beside his. "Are you sure about this?"

"I am, Chakotay." She stepped up beside him to the controls and allowed her bare shoulder to brush his arm while she started the program.

"I've looked forward to this since yesterday," his voice caressed her. "It's been a long time."

"It has." A red glow filled the room. She faced him and raised her hands to tuck a hairpin tighter, stretching her shirt across her chest as his eyes watched. "Too long. Are you ready to get your butt kicked in velocity again, Chakotay?"


End file.
